Germany
France can help Albanese fix AUKUS
Recently-elected Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faces a dilemma on nuclear submarines. Having received only a single day’s notice, and wanting to avoid looking weak on…
The half-hour that fundamentally split Germany from Russia
If you want to see how Vladimir Putin’s aggression is reshaping the European mindset then Germany offers the best view.
It’s remarkable how far strategic thinking has shifted in…
Can the new German foreign minister make a difference?
It is less than two months since Angela Merkel stood down as chancellor of Germany, and a “traffic light” coalition government comprising the Social Democrats, Greens and Free…
Merkel mark II?
Should the world expect four more years of Angela Merkel, “only with less hair”, as the leading broadsheet, Süeddeutsche Zeitung, ungenerously predicted of Germany’s shiny domed…
The revenge of the Scholzomat
“Today is essentially Christmas and a birthday in one for you, and yet you seem about as euphoric as an English butler at teatime,” remarked an astonished television interviewer…
Nord Stream 2: Will you go to the Gazprom with me?
Of the several spectres haunting Europe, the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is one of the most persistent. This week, the project hit another snag. Its approval process was…
Germany and Europe: “Ampel” time for reform
It’s coalition time in Germany. At the 26 September election, the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), led by the current Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, emerged as the largest party…
Deciding Germany’s next direction in the world
With Germany’s federal elections now complete, Social Democrat candidate Olaf Scholz is emerging as most likely to take over from Angela Merkel as Chancellor. Preliminary results…
Dankeschön Frau Merkel
Angela Merkel had already been Chancellor for about six months when I commenced as Australian Ambassador to Germany in April 2006. Her tenure as Germany’s head of government has…
Europe and the South China Sea
In the 16th century the Portuguese were the first Europeans to navigate the South China Sea and lay eyes upon the thousands of islands and reefs that lay in these waters. Long…